Maigret

Just because you name your show and characters from a series of wonderful novels and short stories, it doesn't make it a reasonable representation of its namesake, and this show doesn't. It's more Mod Squad meets 21 Jump Street than Maigret.

The lead, Benjamin Wainwright, is too young, too handsome to be Maigret. Reimagining Maigret and crew as a group of 30 something, gender and race diverse individuals is fine, just don't call it, "Maigret".

If you want to see a more accurate and better acted version watch Michael Gambon's rendition. The only thing these two have in common, is they were both filmed in, of all places, Hungary. I guess Paris isn't scenic enough for English shows to be shot in.

I understand the need to modernize characters, but in this case the principal character has not been updated, he has been completely changed into someone not remotely related to the original.

In the books Maigret is an older bulky, quiet person, basically comfortable in himself. Not a young detective with psychological issues.

So if it was not called Maigret it would be OK, but so, assignment clearly failed.

A very British detective series set in Paris. There's nothing Maigret about this production. No pipe smoking, no vintage Citroën, not even a coffee with a croissant in episode 3 you finally see a pain au chocolat.

The stories are a bit disjointed and sloppy.

Some of the clue finding is pulled out of the air with no explanation.

The overlap between French language and English is also sloppy looking.

I had to forget this was a French detective series, because it didn't feel or look like one.

I would have enjoyed it more if it hadn't been pretending to be Maigret, rather than an unabashedly British cop show with badly pronounced French names, amongst un-Parisian Hungarian buildings, with street and shop signs that were clearly painted yesterday. The appearance of an odd glass of white wine and a baguette doesn't make authenticity. OK as a British procedural, but my suggestion, better to watch Lupin.

I have viewed every version of Maigret that has been televised and read the books... no one is as good as Bruno Cremer in the huge French series. It captured the atmosphere of the time perfectly as well which this new version does not. I'm not sure I can stand the loan but it can't stand comparison.